Samuel Cooper (clergyman)
Encyclopedia
Samuel Cooper was a Congregational
minister in Boston
, Massachusetts
, affiliated with the Brattle Street Church
.
, and graduated from Harvard College
in 1743. He was ordained as a minister on May 21, 1746, and served as pastor of the Brattle Street Church, 1747-1783. In September 1746 he married Judith Bulfinch; they had two daughters.
Members of his parish at the Brattle St. Church included some of the most influential people of the American Revolution
: John Hancock
, Samuel Adams
, Joseph Warren
, John Adams
, and others. He corresponded with Benjamin Franklin
, Charles Hector d'Estaing
, Gideon Hawley
, Charles Gravier de Vergennes
; and was associated with Phillis Wheatley
.
In 1780, he co-founded the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
. He served as "chaplain to the General Court
" 1758-1770 and 1777-1783. Around 1783 Harvard College offered Cooper the position of college president, but Cooper declined.
A portrait of Cooper by John Singleton Copley
now resides in the collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society
.
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
minister in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, affiliated with the Brattle Street Church
Brattle Street Church
The Brattle Street Church was a Congregational and Unitarian church on Brattle Street in Boston, Massachusetts.- Brief history :...
.
Brief biography
Cooper was born in Boston, to William Cooper and Judith Sewall. He attended the Boston Latin SchoolBoston Latin School
The Boston Latin School is a public exam school founded on April 23, 1635, in Boston, Massachusetts. It is both the first public school and oldest existing school in the United States....
, and graduated from Harvard College
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1743. He was ordained as a minister on May 21, 1746, and served as pastor of the Brattle Street Church, 1747-1783. In September 1746 he married Judith Bulfinch; they had two daughters.
Members of his parish at the Brattle St. Church included some of the most influential people of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
: John Hancock
John Hancock
John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...
, Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams was an American statesman, political philosopher, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. As a politician in colonial Massachusetts, Adams was a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and was one of the architects of the principles of American...
, Joseph Warren
Joseph Warren
Dr. Joseph Warren was an American doctor who played a leading role in American Patriot organizations in Boston in early days of the American Revolution, eventually serving as president of the revolutionary Massachusetts Provincial Congress...
, John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
, and others. He corresponded with Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
, Charles Hector d'Estaing
Charles Hector, comte d'Estaing
Jean Baptiste Charles Henri Hector, comte d'Estaing was a French general, and admiral. He began his service as a soldier in the War of the Austrian Succession, briefly spending time as a prisoner of war of the British during the Seven Years' War...
, Gideon Hawley
Gideon Hawley
Gideon Hawley was a missionary to the Iroquois Indians in Massachusetts and on the Susquehanna River in New York.-Biography:He was born in the Stratfield section of Stratford, now Bridgeport, Connecticut, in New England on November 5, 1727. The son of Gideon Hawley and Hannah Bennett who was the...
, Charles Gravier de Vergennes
Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes
Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes was a French statesman and diplomat. He served as Foreign Minister from 1774 during the reign of Louis XVI, notably during the American War of Independence....
; and was associated with Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley was the first African American poet and first African-American woman whose writings were published. Born in Gambia, Senegal, she was sold into slavery at age seven...
.
In 1780, he co-founded the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
. He served as "chaplain to the General Court
Massachusetts General Court
The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the Colonial Era, when this body also sat in judgment of judicial appeals cases...
" 1758-1770 and 1777-1783. Around 1783 Harvard College offered Cooper the position of college president, but Cooper declined.
A portrait of Cooper by John Singleton Copley
John Singleton Copley
John Singleton Copley was an American painter, born presumably in Boston, Massachusetts, and a son of Richard and Mary Singleton Copley, both Irish. He is famous for his portrait paintings of important figures in colonial New England, depicting in particular middle-class subjects...
now resides in the collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society
Massachusetts Historical Society
The Massachusetts Historical Society is a major historical archive specializing in early American, Massachusetts, and New England history...
.
Selected publications
- A sermon preached to the Ancient and Honourable Artillery Company in Boston, New-England, June 3, 1751 : being the anniversary of their election of officers. Boston: Printed by J. Draper for J. Edwards ... and D. Gookin, 1751.
- A sermon preached in Boston, New-England before the Society for Encouraging Industry, and Employing the Poor; August 8. 1753. Boston: Printed by J. Draper, for D. Henchman, in Cornhill, 1753.
- A sermon preached in the audience of His Honour Spencer PhipsSpencer PhipsSpencer Phips was a British politician in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. Born Spencer Bennett, he was adopted by Massachusetts Governor Sir William Phips, whose name he legally took...
, Esq; lieutenant governor and commander in chief; the Honourable His Majesty's Council; and the Honourable House of Representatives, of the province of the Massachusetts-Bay in New-England, May 26th. 1756 Being the anniversary for the election of His Majesty's Council for the said province. Boston, New-England: Printed by Green and Russell, by order of the Honourable House of Representatives. 1756. - A sermon preached before His Excellency Thomas PownallThomas PownallThomas Pownall was a British politician and colonial official. He was governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1758 to 1760, and afterward served in the British Parliament. He traveled widely in the North American colonies prior to the American Revolutionary War, and opposed...
, Esq; captain-general and governor in chief, the Honourable His Majesty's Council and House of Representatives, of the province of the Massachusetts-Bay in New-England, October 16th, 1759 Upon occasion of the success of His Majesty's arms in the reduction of Quebec. Boston, New-England: Printed by Green & Russell, and Edes & Gill, by order of His Excellency the governour, and both Houses of Assembly, 1759. - A sermon preach'd April 9, 1760 : at the ordination of the Reverend Mr. Joseph Jackson, to the pastoral care of the church of Brooklin. Boston, New-England: Printed by John Draper, 1760.
- A sermon upon occasion of the death of our late Sovereign, George the SecondGeorge II of Great BritainGeorge II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
Preach'd before His Excellency Francis Bernard, Esq; captain-general and governor in chief, the Honourable His Majesty's Council, and House of Representatives, of the province of the Massachusetts-Bay in New-England, January 1. 1761. Boston: Printed by John Draper, printer to His Excellency the governor and the Honorable His Majesty's Council, 1761. - A discourse on the man of sin; delivered in the chapel of Harvard College, in Cambridge, New-England, September 1, 1773. Boston: Printed and sold at Greenleaf's printing-office, in Hanover-Street, 1774.
- A sermon preached before His Excellency John Hancock, Esq; governourGovernor of MassachusettsThe Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the executive magistrate of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The current governor is Democrat Deval Patrick.-Constitutional role:...
, the Honourable the Senate, and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, October 25, 1780 Being the day of the commencement of the ConstitutionMassachusetts ConstitutionThe Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the fundamental governing document of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, one of the 50 individual state governments that make up the United States of America. It was drafted by John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Bowdoin during the...
, and inauguration of the new government. Boston, Commonwealth of Massachusetts: Printed by T. and J. Fleet, and J. Gill, 1780.
Further reading
- Phillis Wheatley. An Elegy, sacred to the memory of the great divine, the Reverend and learned Dr. Samuel Cooper, who departed this life December 29, 1783, aetatis 59. Boston: Printed and sold by E. Russell, in Essex-Street, near Liberty-Pole, 1784.
- John G. Buchanan. The Justice of America's Cause: Revolutionary Rhetoric in the Sermons of Samuel Cooper. The New England Quarterly, Vol. 50, No. 1 (Mar., 1977), pp. 101-124.
- Gillian B. Anderson. The Funeral of Samuel Cooper. The New England Quarterly, Vol. 50, No. 4 (Dec., 1977), pp. 644-659.
- Charles W. Akers. Religion and the American Revolution: Samuel Cooper and the Brattle Street Church. The William and Mary Quarterly, Third Series, Vol. 35, No. 3 (Jul., 1978), pp. 477-498.
- Charles W. Akers. The Divine Politician: Samuel Cooper and the American Revolution in Boston. Northeastern University Press, 1982.
External links
- http://archive.uua.org/aboutuua/tour/portraits_cooper.html Copley's portrait of Cooper